FIA busts human trafficking network in Punjab, arrests nine

LAHORE: The Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) has detained nine individuals engaged in human trafficking and visa fraud, luring naive citizens with fake promises of sending them overseas for employment, ARY News reported.

FIA conducted raids in Gujranwala, Gujrat, Multan, Rahim Yar Khan, and Mian Channu, where members of a well-organised network were apprehended.

According to the FIA spokesperson, six suspects from Southern Punjab were arrested for attracting victims through social media with fake job offers in New Zealand and Bahrain, removing over PKR 8.5 million through cash and banking channels.

In another similar operation in Gujranwala and Gujrat, three more suspects were detained, who were identified as Rafiq, Mehd Butt, and Abdul Muiz. These individuals were involved in visa fraud, luring citizens by offering false visas and employment opportunities abroad. Upon failing to fulfil their commitments, they vanished.

The operation is part of the FIA’s escalated campaign following the Libyan boat tragedy, which uncovered deep-rooted human trafficking syndicates.

In response, FIA has already banned 87 lower-ranking officers and stripped them from postings at border control and anti-human smuggling cells.

The investigation report into the Libya incident also concerned senior FIA authorities, raising anxieties about internal accountability.

In recent reports from Peshawar, the FIA performed extraordinary hard work. They arrested three people, Saddam, Dareesh Muhammad, and Muhammad Ilyas, who were smuggling people to Europe through Libya.

In Multan, a different trafficker named Tahir Mushtaq was caught after tricking 36 people in visa fraud with fake job offers in Dubai and Oman.

Officials have confirmed that further investigations and raids are underway to arrest remaining members of these criminal networks.

Pakistan’s Minister of State for Interior, Talal Chaudhry, has declared that no fake passports can currently be issued in the country, following a crackdown on networks involved in human smuggling and passport fraud.

According to Talal Chaudhry, authorities have arrested over 285 people involved in human trafficking, including more than 200 individuals associated with the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA).